NOVEL NEXT Chapter 12: 12
Ali POV
I had the song Dip it low queued up for when Pen walked through the door. It was the same song Lisa played for both of us when any of us had sex after it came out. It took her all of two seconds after the door closed and I put the song on before she fell to the floor rolling with laughter. "Oh my God I can't believe you Ali. I needed that laugh though especially after the awkward way Leonard was pouting at me." I paused the song and frowned before saying "Do I need to kick his ass?" Penny just chuckled at me and rolled her eyes and said, "No thank you, I can handle him. He just seems so sad and I feel bad for the guy but he just isn't my type you know." I scoffed at her and said, "Oh yea I know what your type is buff, braindead and tall enough to make your freakishly tall self look small." And with that comment o had stoked the flames of war. I was rewarded for my witty repartee with a pillow to the head and the retreating back of my sister as she hollered "I'm getting ready for work try not to be a bitch when I get back." I cackled as she flipped me the bird knowing full well that she was smiling as she walked away.
Penny had managed to get ready in record time she would only be 10 minutes late for her shift. I laughed as she ran from the apartment mumbling curses at me under her breath as she went. About five minutes after she left I heard Sheldon at the door.
**knock**knock**knock**Ali
**knock**knock**knock**Ali
**knock**knock**knock**Ali
I walked to the door with a smile on my face to open it. "Hey Sheldon. What can I do for you?" He looked exasperated when he said, "Hello Ali, may I please come in?" I nodded and moved aside for him to enter he looked around and said, "I see you are finally unpacking. That's good I was starting to get anxious about the mess. Would you like any help?" I chuckle softly at his comments before I say, "Yeah the mess was getting to me as well, but I finally ha e the time to fix it and put things away. I would actually really appreciate any help I can get Penny wouldn't be much help with organizing, so I figured I would be stuck doing everything myself."
Sheldon paused for a second as if shocked I accepted his offer of help before he said, "I love organizing things and I will be more than happy to help, but first I must extend an invitation to you as a courtesy." I was happy for the help and also curious about what he was talking about so I motioned for him to continue. "Alright, I originally came over here because I was told to by Leonard. He wanted me to invite you for dinner at the cheesecake factory with him, Howard, Raj and myself. I personally feel his attempts at flirting with you both is egregious and wholeheartedly unwelcome in your case. Unfortunately I do not know Penny well enough to be able to make a sound conclusion as far as her interest in Leonard but given the size of the man she was kissing in the hallway I'm going to assume she is uninterested in his advances." I full on laughed because the thought of Leonard and Penny is funny to me and the fact that Sheldon was being so serious and sincere in his defense of Penny and me that I just couldn't take it. "Sorry Sheldon I'm not laughing at you I promise. I'm laughing at the fact Leonard can't take a hint even when you lay it out for him like that. As for Penny and her lack of interest in him you would be correct she sees him as something akin to a stuffed animal cute to look at but not something you would date. She is to soft hearted to really be mean to him but if he keeps pushing her he will find out what jr. rodeo means to her."
Sheldon looked puzzled at my last comment for only a short second before he himself broke out in a breathy laugh. "That's funny Ali, I assume Penny was part of the rodeo circuit." I smiled up at him and said, "She sure was, she was the rodeo champion in our area for three years running and she could castrate a goat in no time flat. That girl can be deadly if giving the opportunity, she wasn't Daddy's favorite for no reason." Sheldon crossed his legs and gulped before he said, "I wouldn't doubt that, could you promise that she won't go after me please. I have had enough of my genitalia being targeted. In my childhood my sister Missy always seemed to favor violence towards my genitalia as a punishment when I did things she deemed annoying." I sorted because Penny used to do the same thing to Randall when she was little and he would just barge into her room to steal her prize money. I looked at Sheldon's pensive gaze and said, "I can't promise that cause I don't control her but I will try to keep her rodeo skills as far from you as I can." He smiled and said, "Thank you that is all I ask for. I will also attempt to not anger her I will have to pull up the rules I set for myself when I was younger and shared a room with Missy." He shuddered and I suddenly grew very curious about Sheldon's sister, maybe we could be friends.
"Lets get back on topic Sheldon, I would love to go to dinner with you as I haven't been to the store yet with all the chaos of moving in. I have one condition though, you have to sit between me and your friends I don't really have the desire to spend time with them. Raj might be alright but he seems quiet I don't think I have even heard him speak. Howard and Leonard on the other hand give me the creeps. Mostly Howard but Leonard is working his way up my you give me the creeps list." Sheldon smiled at me and said, "I agree with you about Howard but we must make sacrifices for those we care about. Although Leonard is as you put it creepy he is my friend, Howard just kind of came along with him. He does have his uses though, he is the more technically inclined than the rest of us due to his engineering degree. While I have the superior intellect between the two of us I have found that having someone skilled in the labor aspects of robotics to be useful." I smiled at Sheldon because I could tell that even if he doesn't agree with all of their antics he still views the guys as his friends so I will try to see the good in them for his sake. Look at me all mature and shit Penny would be proud, I'll tell her later. "Lets go to dinner then, I will be nice but I still need you to sit next to me. I don't know if I trust Howard to not cop a feel even if he has his uses, I will punch him in the face." Sheldon smiled at me and said, "Alright I will also warn him to keep his comments to himself or to a minimum." With that I grabbed my keys and headed for the door with Sheldon following along.